Darkest by Ashe Barker Read Free Book Online

to one side as she considers me carefully. Then, “He told you about that? All of it? About Louisa, and how Rosie came to live with us?”
    “Yes, he did.” I hold her gaze, waiting for her reaction. And hoping. Somehow, it matters to me what Grace thinks.
    She gazes at me, silent, thinking. Then, “He never talks about that time. Not to anyone. If he told you, you two must be very close.”
    “We are. Sort of…”
    “I thought…maybe, but I wasn’t sure… Are you sleeping with him? I expect you did when you were in Leeds, especially with you staying longer, over the weekend. But are you still? Now you’re home?”
    I’m not at all sure either Nathan or I am accountable to Grace for this, but I like her, I respect her, and her approval matters to me. And I suspect it matters to Nathan too, so I try to explain his position, as best I understand it. “He’s concerned about Rosie. He doesn’t want to upset her, make her feel threatened or insecure.”
    Grace nods. “Yes, he’s always put Rosie first. He’s a good father. But I think she’ll be fine with it. With you.”
    “Really? I was hoping, you know, that we’d get on okay…”
    “And you do. Rosie’s besotted with you. And if Mr Darke is too, well, I’m glad. It’s time he took up with a nice girl and stopped messing around with all those, those…other women.”
    “I wouldn’t say ‘besotted’ exactly. But he’s been very kind, and…” Suddenly the significance of her words hits me. Other women? Christ, she knows.
    Mortified with embarrassment I can feel the hot flush creeping up over my face. My cheeks are burning and I can’t look at her. Christ! As if reading my mind, Grace reaches out and pats my hand. “Don’t worry, love. I know what he’s like, all his fun and games. Live and let live, I say. He’s a nice man, a good employer, and a brilliant father. That’s all that matters to me. But I was his housekeeper in Leeds before we got Rosie and moved here. I lived in the apartment below his. I know who came and went. And I know who I made breakfast for…” She stops suddenly, her expression worried. “Oh, am I speaking out of turn? I don’t mean to upset you or anything. I just thought you’d know…”
    I nod, my voice barely a whisper. “I do know, but he promised me…”
    “Right, well, that’s okay then. If he promised, he’ll keep his word. He’s like that. A good thing too, and about time he saw some sense. Not that it’s any of my business, obviously, but… Hardly ever the same woman twice. And I know how many beds I had to change. They always slept in the spare room. Did you sleep in the spare room, Eva?”
    “No.” My voice is small, I still can’t look at her but I can feel her intense gaze on me. My face is a vivid shade of scarlet and my palms are sweating. She pats my hand again, approving.
    “Good. That shows you’re different. I could tell he liked you, even from that first night when you arrived in all that rain. Something in the way he looked at you, never took his eyes off you. He was so angry about his car. I’ve never seen him that mad. But his fascination with you was so obvious. I know he likes women, lots of women, but I’ve never seen him look at anyone like he was looking at you that night. I’d have laughed out loud but he was in such a foul mood I think he’d have sacked the pair of us. I could see it, though, and I knew he wanted you. I wasn’t surprised when he asked you to go to Leeds with him.” She hesitates a moment, then, “Did he hurt you?”
    “Hurt me? I… You know about…?”
    “Like I said, I’m his housekeeper. I’m good at my job and I know what goes on in the house I look after. I know all about Mr Darke’s…habits. The games he likes to play.”
    I do look up at her now, feeling oddly let down, betrayed, thrown to the wolves. Well, wolf.
    “But, you left us alone in the kitchen that day.”
    My mind flashes back to that incredible experience on her nice,